Universal child&#39;s chair



Dec. 27, 1966 L. J. BRODER UNIVERSAL CHILD'S CHAIR Filed Dec.

United States Patent 3,294,440 UNIVERSAL CHILDS (IHATR Leonard J.Broiler, 207 Skyline Circle, Apt. 37, Grand Prairie, Tex. 75il5i} FiledDec. 1, 1965, Ser. No. lll,74ll 7 Claims. (Cl. 27--150) My inventionrelates in general to chairs for children and in particular toimprovements in childrens chairs such that their utility more closelyapproaches universality.

Previously developed childrens chairs such as highchairs have thedisadvantage that they fit essentially only one size child. That is, thedepth of the seat is unalterably and rigidly established, as are theplacement of the foot rest, the height of the chair above the floor, andthe height of the tray above the seat. While it is true that theposition of the tray relative to the back of the chair usually may beselectively determined on prior art childrens chairs, this feature ofitself does not make the chairs suitable for use by children of allsizes and ages. This means that each chair has limited usefulness sinceit will fit a particular child for only a limited range of time duringhis growth. Since it is uneconomical to buy a number of chairs for achild during diiferent periods of his growth, the child must continue touse the same chair for years. Consequently, the chair often givesimproper support with possibly detrimental results to such things as thechilds breathing, posture, and comfort.

It is therefore the general object of my invention to provide auniversal childs chair, one that may be comfortably utilized byessentially any child, irrespective of age or size.

Another object of my invention is to provide in a childs chair a traythat includes improved means for establishing the tray in a position infront of the child and for establishing a position of the tray enablingthe child to conveniently enter or leave the chair.

Another object of my invention is to provide in a childs chair a seatmember and tray which cooperate to provide comfortable support for achild of any size or age.

Another object of my invention is to provide a variable position footrest in a chair having a variable position pedestal with the foot restand the pedestal utilizing elements of the same structure inestablishing their selected positions.

These and other objects are effected by my invention and will beapparent from the following description taken in accordance with theaccompanying drawings, in which:

.FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a universal childs chair constructed inaccordance with the principles of my invention;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary perspective view of the childs chair of FIG. 1as viewed from a position beneath the seat member of the chair;

FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view of portions of the childs chair ofFIGS. 1 and 2 as seen looking along the lines III-11! of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of fastener means utilized to establishselected positions for the tray of the childs chair;

FIG. 5 is a longitudinal section view of the fastener means of FIG. 4,with portions thereof realigned from their position shown in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary perspective view of two telescoping, tubularsections of the pedestal structure of my childs chair and the positionermeans utilized to establish a fixed relationship in the relative axialpositions of the telescoping members;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary perspective view of locking ice means that areutilized in establishing a selected depth of the seat member of mychilds chair; and

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary side elevational view of the foot rest shown inperspective in FIG. 1.

The numeral 11 in the drawing designates a chair structure having a backmember 13 and a seat member 15. In this particular embodiment seat andback members are formed of one contoured, integral piece of material ofsatisfactory composition, such as wood or plastic.

The chair structure 11 is supported by a pedestal 17 that includes inthis instance three telescoping, tubular sections 19, 21, and 23. Thepedestal 17 is maintained in a vertical position by suitable means suchas feet 25 which extend laterally from the lower telescoping section 19.The feet 25 are preferably tubular having curved section bottom contourso that the chair can be easily moved across the floor even with a childin it. Referring to FIG. 6, lower section 19 receives intermediatetelescoping sections 21 and each of the sections has vertically spacedapertures 27 which may be selectively aligned with each other to receivea positioner means 29. Included in the positioner means is an inserterelement 31 that has an outer curved portion 33 adapted to extend throughthe apertures 27 of the telescoping members. A shoulder 35 is providedtoward an inner region of the inserter element 31 and is attached to aspring 37 that urges the inserter element outward into apertures 27.

The spring 37 of FIG. 6 is secured, as indicated by numeral 39, by asuitable means such as spot welding to the intermediate telescopingmember 21. To establish a new position between intermediate telescopingmember 21 and the lower telescoping member 19, the inserter element 31of the positioner means 29 is depressed until its outer, curved portion33 is free to slide past the inner surface of the lower telescopingmember 19. This enables the intermediate telescoping member 21 to bemoved upward or downward until the inserter element 31 becomes alignedwith the next adjacent aperture 27 of the lower telescoping member 19,at which time the inserter element will be urged outwardly by spring 37.

The upper telescoping member 23 has a similar positioner means 29 (notshown) so that its position relative to intermediate telescoping member21 may be selectively established.

A foot rest 41 is secured to the pedestal 17 by insertion into thepreviously described apertures 27 of an up per hook member 42 (seeespecially FIG. 8) that extends from the planar upper surface 43 of thefoot rest. The foot rest has a lower surface 45 which has a narrowextension 47 that is preferably vertically aligned with the hook element42 to extend into selected apertures 27. Thus, the hook element 42 andthe narrow extension 47 cooperate with the apertured telescoping membersto retain the foot rest 41 in a selected vertical position. This is anadvantageous arrangement since the same apertures 27 used to establishthe selected relative positions between the telescoping members 19, 21,23 are utilized in establishing the vertical position of the foot rest41.

Upper telescoping member 23 is secured to seat member 15 of the chairstructure by a suitable fastener means 48 as shown in FIG. 2. The seatmember 15 of the chair structure 11 has a shallow inner region 49. Thearms 51 of the chair are formed of strips of material, such as metal,which extend from the back member 13 of the chair underneath the seatmember 15 thereof and which then curves upwardly and backwardly to formparallel arms 51 spaced above and along the respective sides of the seatmember 15. The arms 51 have in an upper region thereof a plurality ofhorizontally spaced apertures 55 (see FIGS. 2 and 3). The arms 51 aresized such that detachable elongated members 53 may be added along thelength of the front edge of the seat member 15 to increase the depththereof. Thus, the seat member has variable depth to accommodatechildren of essentially any age and size. The detachable elongatedmembers 53 are secured in position by locking means 57 (see FIGS. 2 and7), which in this instance comprise a latch 59 that has one extremitypivotably secured to one detachable member 53 by suitable means such asa screw 61, and which has a slot 63 in the other extremity thereof forreceiving a shaft 65 with a head thereon. The shaft may be secured tothe adjacent detachable member 53 or to the seat member 15 of the chairstructure.

Secured to the lower surface of tray 67 is a hinged bracket 69 and apivotable bracket 71 (see FIGS. 2 and 3). The hinged bracket 69 has oneportion 73 secured to the tray by suitable means such as screws 74 and adownwardly extending portion 75 that is hinged to the portion 73 torotate about a substantially horizontal axis when the tray is positionedon the arms. Downwardly extending portion 75 will depend substantiallyvertically from the hinge and includes a plurality of spaced apertures77.

A pivotable bracket 71 has a portion 79 that is secured by suitablemeans such as a washer and nut 80 to a downwardly extending post 82which is attached to the lower surface of the tray 67 by screws 84. Adownwardly extending portion 81 of the pivotable bracket has apertures77. The apertures 77 in the downward extending portions of both thehinged and pivotable brackets 69, 71 may be aligned with selectedapertures 55 in the arms of the chair structure. A releasable fastenermeans 83 may then be inserted into these selected apertures of the armand of the downwardly extending portions of the above brackets 69, 71 toestablish both vertical and horizontal locations for the tray.

The apertures above are preferably rectangular and the fastener means 83include a body portion 85 (see FIGS. 4 and that may be received by theapertures. A shoulder 87 is provided on one extremity of the body sothat the fastener means has limited axial movement with respect to theapertures. A rotatable end section 89 is secured to a shaft 91 of thebody 85 and is retained thereon by one or more balls 93 that rotate in araceway which has disposed therein at 90 degree intervals a respectivedepression 95. When the rotatable end section 89 is in the retainerposition, as shown in FIG. 4, the ball is resting in a respectivedepression 95 and the end section 89 is disposed normal to the bodyportion 85. When the end section 89 is in the release position, as shownin FIG. 5, the ball is resting in a respective depression 95 and the endsection 89 is disposed parallel to, or in alignment with the bodyportion 85. The one or more balls 93 are retained by a compressionspring 97 and a plug 99 that is secured to the rotatable end section 89.

In operation, the vertical height of the chair structure 11 isestablished by depressing the positioner means 29 in either or bothtelescoping sections 21, 23 and by thereafter extending or retractingthe telescoping sections. The positioner means 29 automatically springsinto a locking position due to the action of spring 37. Then, the footrest 41 is positioned at the correct vertical height for the leg lengthof a child by inserting the hook element 42 and the narrow extension 47into selected apertures 27. Next, the detachable elongated members 53may be inserted or Withdrawn from the seat member by the previouslydescribed manipulation of the locking means 57 to establish the correctchair depth for the leg length of a particular child. Also, the verticaland horizontal position of the tray 57 with respect to the chairstructure 11 may be varied by rotating the rotatable end section 89 offastener means 83 and by thereafter retracting the fastener means. Thenselected apertures 77, 55 of the brackets and arms may be paired.Thereafter, the fastener means 83 may be inserted into the pairedapertures and locked into position by moving the rotatable end section89 of the fastener means. To remove a child from the chair the fastenermeans 83 associated with the hinged bracket 69 may be retracted so thatthe downwardly extending portion 75 thereof may be moved to a positionnot to interfere with the movement of the tray about the substantiallyvertical axis defined by the pivotable bracket 71. Consequently, thetray may be moved to an out-of-the-way position without the necessityfor taking utensils such as dishes or glasses from the tray, and may beeasily and conveniently moved back to its original, locked position.

It should be pointed out that the pedestal structure should be made upof at least three telescoping members. Also, while in the embodimentshown, the means for varying the depth of the seat comprises one or moreof the elongate members 53 juxtaposed adjacent the front edge -of theseat, it is recognized that other depth varying means may be used withinthe scope of my invention in accordance with the broader aspectsthereof.

It should be apparent from the foregoing that I have provided aninvention having significant advantages.

The provision of a universal childs chair that may be comfortablyutilized by essentially any child, irrespective of age or size is initself a significant advantage.

The combination of a seat and tray structure which cooperate to providegood support for essentially any child is especially advantageous. As achild grows, for example, elongated members 53 may be added to match thechilds longer legs. Also, the position of the tray relative to the backand seat of the chair structure may be selected such that the traysnugly fits comfortably just below the wast of any child.

Moreover, the provision of a tray that pivots about a substantiallyvertical axis is an advantageous way to move the tray to anout-of-the-way position while the child enters or leaves the chair.Also, the variable position foot rest and telescoping chair supportingpedestal leads to significant advantages. Not only can the foot rest bemoved to a position to accommodate the leg length of a particular child,but both the foot rest and the telescoping pedestal utilize the samemeans to establish their positions. That is, the apertures previouslydescribed perform two simultaneous functions, thereby simplifying thestructure.

While I have shown my invention in only 'one form, it should be apparentto those skilled in the art that it is not so limited, but issusceptible to various changes and modifications without departing fromthe spirit thereof.

I claim:

1. A universal childs chair comprising:

(a) a chair structure including seat and back members and support meanstherefor;

(b) means for varying the depth of the seat of said chair structure;

(c) a tray carried by said chair structure; and

(d) means releasably connecting said tray with said chair structure toenable selectivity in both the horizontal and vertical locations of saidtray.

2. The childs chair as defined by claim 1, wherein the means for varyingthe length of said seat comprises one or more detachable, elongatedmembers juxtaposed adjacent the front edge thereof.

3. A universal childs chair comprising:

(a) a pedestal having at least three telescoping members with verticallyspaced and alignable apertures therein;

(b) positioner means for insertion into an aligned pair of saidapertures to establish the overall height of said pedestal;

(c) a foot rest having vertically spaced protrusions for insertionrespectively into a selected pair of said apertures to establish avertical position of said foot rest; and

(d) a chair structure supported by said pedestal.

4. The childs chair as defined by claim 3 wherein a tray is carried bysaid chair structure; and fastener means releasably connect said traywith said chair structure to enable selectivity in both the horizontaland vertical locations of said tray.

5. The childs chair as defined by claim 4 wherein said fastener meansincludes parallel arms having horizontally spaced apertures; a hingedbracket secured to said tray for rotation about a substantiallyhorizontal axis, with vertically spaced apertures formed in a downwardlyextending portion thereof; a pivotable bracket secured to said tray forenabling rotation thereof about a substantially vertical axis; withvertically spaced apertures formed in a downwardly extending portionthereof; and releasible fastener means for insertion into selectedapertures of the downwardly extending portions of said brackets and intoselected apertures of said arms to enable said selectivity in thehoirzontal and vertical locations of said tray.

6. A childs chair as defined by claim 3 wherein said pedestal has a baseportion comprising a plurality of feet fixed to and extending outwardlyfrom the bottom portion of the lower telescoping member, the feet beingtubular and having curved section bottom contour.

7. A universal childs chair comprising:

(a) a pedestal;

(b) a chair structure including seat and back members supported by saidpedestal, said chair structure including two parallel arms spaced aboveand along the respective sides of the seat member;

() a tray carried by said arms;

(d) a hinged bracket pivotally secured to said tray, with a portionextending downwardly therefrom for movement about a substantiallyhorizontal axis;

(e) a pivotable bracket secured to said tray, with a portion extendingdownwardly therefrom that enables rotation of said tray about asubstantially vertical axis;

(1?) fastener means for securing the downwardly extending portions ofsaid brackets to respective ones 6 of said arms, with at least thefastener means associated with said hinged bracket being releasable topermit rotation of said tray about the substantially vertical axisdefined by said pivotable bracket;

(g) the downwardly extending portions of said brackets includingvertically spaced apertures for selective alignment with horizontallyspaced apertures formed in said arms, and said fastener means beinginsertable into aligned pairs of apertures in a respective arm and adownwardly extending portion of one of said brackets.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS D. 165,853 2/1952Lydon 297-148 X 496,739 5/ 1893 Kennedy 248-'7 X 1,465,291 8/1923 Walker297-437 X 1,964,216 6/1934 Sargent 297-437 2,155,813 5/1939 Veal 297-1512,466,350 5/ 1949 Anderson 297-383 X 2,605,987 8/1952 Brown et al248-408 2,664,143 12/1953 Licaisi 297-154 X 2,675,066 5/1954 Ohman297-151 X 2,707,020 5/1955 Nobbe 297-151 X 2,741,299 5/1956 Bargen248-407 2,767,774 10/ 1956 Derby 297-149 2,799,324 7/1957 Anderson297-150 X 2,979,118 5/1961 Gelrnan 297-150 3,181,828 5/1965 Cramer297-338 X FOREIGN PATENTS 898,765 6/1962 Great Britain.

FRANK B. SHERRY, Primary Examiner.

JAMES T. MCCALL, Examiner.

1. A UNIVERSAL CHILD''S CHAIR COMPRISING (A) A CHAIR STRUCTURE INCLUDINGSEAT AND BACK MEMBERS AND SUPPORT MEANS THEREOF; (B) MEANS FOR VARYINGTHE DEPTH OF THE SEAT OF SAID CHAIR STRUCTURE; (C) A TRAY CARRIED BYSAID CHAIR STRUCTURE; AND (D) MEANS RELEASABLY CONNECTING SAID TRAY WITHSAID CHAIR STRUCTURE TO ENABLE SELECTIVITY IN BOTH THE HORIZONTAL ANDVERTICAL LOCATIONS OF SAID TRAY.